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PaperclipPerfector  5mo ago (text post)   27501 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of November 27, 2023

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I'm a sperm donor, so I'll have some descendants running around.

So you care about the future state of fertility out of care for your descendants but you don't care enough to actually help raise them?

Most of the high fertility subgroups are subsidized by larger, less fertile society. Color me skeptical of the 'Amish/Haredim will inherit the earth' scenarios.

What other scenarios do you have?

People who don't have kids are not suddenly going to muster the courage to because Elon Musk came out with an artificial womb. Innovations in social engineering so that if you have a kid and they just up and die for whatever reason like you were too busy watching Youtube shorts then it's no big deal would go a longer way I suppose.

There was that one incident of some scientist woman who was too wrapped up in her stressful and important duties that she forgot to take out a young child out of a car and ended up losing it. This is probably what's keeping a lot of more-educated people out of parenting.

So you care about the future state of fertility out of care for your descendants but you don't care enough to actually help raise them?

He isn't laying eggs out in the wilderness, presumably the people who opt to take sperms from donors are above average in terms of dedication and interest in parenting, certainly in wealth.

He isn't laying eggs out in the wilderness

No, in some kind of refrigerated device.

presumably the people who opt to take sperms from donors are above average in terms of dedication and interest in parenting, certainly in wealth.

People with an interest in parenting don't need to buy sperm in most cases.

I would surmise that that group would be older and less likely to have large families. While wealth is a good thing to have to support a family, having young parents and siblings can arguably be beneficial as well.

Especially when it comes time to help raise grandchildren.

People with an interest in parenting don't need to buy sperm in most cases.

I strongly disagree, and believe me that if I'm not a gyno myself, I would know better.

The typical reason for seeking donor sperm is male infertility in a normal couple, in other words they want kids yet find out they can't have them, biologically related to the man at the least.

It's also prima facie ridiculous if you even think for a minute, of course people seeking donated sperm want a family, what else are they supposed to do with it, organize bukkake parties?

No, in some kind of refrigerated device.

I would be very concerned if "he" laid eggs anywhere really. But it's the 21st century, who am I to assume pronouns?

It's also prima facie ridiculous if you even think for a minute, of course people seeking donated sperm want a family, what else are they supposed to do with it, organize bukkake parties?

I don't want to touch that one with a ten-foot barge pole, but believe me: I wouldn't be at all surprised.

Ah, the wonders of humanity in its rich variety!

The typical reason for seeking donor sperm is male infertility in a normal couple, in other words they want kids yet find out they can't have them, biologically related to the man at the least.

Yes, I understand that, but most people who want kids don't have that issue.

There wouldn't be such a high abortion rate if the average person needed a specific medicalized procedure to get a woman pregnant.

Absent that specific procedure, the woman with a burning desire to have kids could easily find a different mate to get it done, considering how common it is for people to swap partners these days.

Yes, I understand that, but most people who want kids don't have that issue.

I took what you previously said as implying that people who opt for sperm donors don't want kids, which may have been a misunderstanding on my part.

Absent that specific procedure, the woman with a burning desire to have kids could easily find a different mate to get it done, considering how common it is for people to swap partners these days.

Are you encouraging women to leave their husbands because they're infertile? I mean, I personally think that's an entirely understandable if uncomfortable reason, but the women are presumably finding a new "mate" in the form of the donor, without having to break monogamy with the man they know and love.

Are you encouraging women to leave their husbands because they're infertile?

Not necessarily, I would just advise people who actually want to raise children to make that a priority in their life. If you belong to a secular tribe, you could easily try out a partner and leave them if they are infertile.

If you don't belong to a secular tribe and God does not send you the children you hoped for, you'll probably find plenty of children in your tribe to help out with.

The hard part is not making them, it's actually taking care of the children.

So you care about the future state of fertility out of care for your descendants but you don't care enough to actually help raise them?

I've always had kind of a niggling, I guess atavistic drive to propagate my genetics and would feel sort of guilty about terminating my 'line', which is why I jumped through all the hoops to donate (well that and the payment). But no I have no interest in raising kids.

People who don't have kids are not suddenly going to muster the courage to because Elon Musk came out with an artificial womb.

We could probably just pay people to raise them in Brave New World style barracks or something honestly.

We could probably just pay people to raise them in Brave New World style barracks or something honestly.

I've been following this thread with interest and I feel like you've been holding your own fairly well in the face of multiple onslaughts. Here, however, you undo what I imagined was a fairly internally consistent, rational point of view (nevertheless quite different from my own, but compelling) and reveal a certain immaturity about what the hell you're talking about.

This was (mostly) a joke. I do hope technology will come to at least our aid, if not our total salvation, but I’m dreaming more of automation than BNW.

Fair enough.

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